During Monday’s MTP Daily, MSNBC’s Katy Tur proved once again she wasn’t ready for prime time when she got into a heated argument with Ohio Representative Mike Tuner about whether or not President Trump had ever denounced hate groups during the 2016 campaign. “I don't think he did. I was there every day,” she chided her guest who was accurately saying Trump did.
The argument began when Tur asserted that the president wasn’t hitting that “softball” of denouncing hate groups. “Today was the third chance to say: ‘I don't want your support, don't march in my name.’ And we did not hear that from him,” she said, cutting Turner off.
“We certainly heard it from the campaign where people repeatedly came to him and said: ‘Denounce them now, denounce them now, denounce them now,’ and he did,” he reminded her.
“Respectfully Congressman, I was there every step of the way during the campaign and it took him awhile to condemn hate groups,” she shot back as she rolled her eyes. “He never said to white nationalists explicitly. And if he did, I can't remember it off the top of my head, but I don’t think he did. He never said: “I don’t want your support.’”
But that was a lie. Because during the March 3 GOP primary debate hosted by the Fox News Channel, Trump told a moderator: “I totally disavow the Ku Klux Klan. I'd totally disavow David Duke. I've been doing it for two weeks. This is, you are probably the 18th person that's asked the question.”
Another instance of Trump denouncing the KKK was documented by CNN in an article titled: “Trump denounces David Duke, KKK.” The first sentence in the article explained how “Donald Trump issued a crystal clear disavowal Thursday of former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke after stumbling last weekend over a question about the hate group leader on CNN.”
And just a few days before Election Day, Trump denounced the support he received from a newspaper associated with the KKK. As the LA Times wrote on November 1: “Donald Trump's campaign Tuesday night said that he ‘denounces hate in any form’ and disavowed support for his candidacy offered by a newspaper associated with the Ku Klux Klan.”
“This publication is repulsive and their views do not represent the tens of millions of Americans who are uniting behind our campaign,” a campaign statement to the press said.
Even after the election, Trump denounced the Alt-Right. In an interview with The New York Times, the then President-elect rejected the support of the Alt-Right saying: “I don’t want to energize the group, and I disavow the group,” and “It’s not a group I want to energize, and if they are energized, I want to look into it and find out why.”
But all of that apparently didn’t ring a bell with Tur. “I don't think he did. I was there every day. And then why would he not say it today,” she snapped at Turner. “When you condemn somebody, you pretty much condemn them. There’s not much wiggle room on condemn,” he joked in response.
“I feel like you're trying to – you’re trying pretty hard to make him look better than he is, he does,” she suggested of her guest. Turner continued to state the fact that Trump “very clearly” denounced them during and after the campaign. “No he didn’t,” an obviously frustrated Tur whined.
Turner appeared to slyly call Tur out by noting how she was making it political:
We're not going to let this political discourse of the blame game of how many times does denounce have to happen before denounce has happened and come together. Because there are those who want to use this for politics. This is not political.
Tur commands an extensive rap sheet of vigorously arguing her false facts as 100 percent truth. One of her more infamous moments came when she claimed she couldn’t recall President Obama promising the Russian president that he could be “more flexible” after the 2012 election. Her excuse for the forgetfulness was that she wasn’t reporting on politics at the time.
So the serious question is: Since according to Tur, “I was there every step of the way during the campaign,” then why can’t she remember the facts this time? She either has a really bad memory or she’s playing a political game as Turner suggested.
Transcript below:
MSNBC
MTP Daily
August 14, 2017
5:04:54 PM Eastern…
REP. MIKE TURNER: Jesse Gooding wrote a book about his Civil Rights leadership. And in that book is the story of our community coming together. And I think that’s what we need to see what the President. People who love our country should not be thwarted or challenged by those who hate. Our country is a country that should be proud. We’re the country that elected Barak Obama as president of the United States. These hate groups; they need to be isolated. They need to be set aside and we need to come together as a country that loves our country and loves each other.
KATY TUR: So why are we not seeing our President do that? Seems like a pretty softball to hit?
TURNER: Well, you know, I think the President has that opportunity. What we need –
TUR (cutting off Turner): He has that opportunity, but he's been given multiple chances to hit that ball, congressman and he hasn't done it. Today was the third chance to say: “I don't want your support, don't march in my name.” And we did not hear that from him.
TURNER: Well, I think we have heard that from the President. We certainly heard it from the campaign where people repeatedly came to him and said: “Denounce them now, denounce them now, denounce them now,” and he did. I think he has. But I don't think the issue is “denounce.” I think we all understand and agree we denounce. We denounce and these are hate groups. They're not us. They're not the people who love our country.
…
TUR: Respectfully Congressman, I was there every step of the way during the campaign and it took him awhile to condemn hate groups. It took him awhile to condemn David Duke. He didn't do that initially. He never said to white nationalists explicitly. And if he did, I can't remember it off the top of my head, but I don’t think he did. He never said: “I don’t want your support.”
TURNER: He did. He did.
TUR: I don't think he did. I was there every day. And then why would he not say it today? These protestors –
TURNER: What you're saying is did he condemn them—
TUR: No, no. Hold on hold on hold on. Let me finish what I'm saying.
TURNER: When you condemn somebody, you pretty much condemn them. There’s not much wiggle room on condemn.
TUR: You say to David Duke: “I don't want you trying to fulfill my promises. I don't want you protesting in my name. I don't want you saying that you believe what I think is that this is okay for you to do it.” You go out there and you be forceful. … I feel like you're trying to – you’re trying pretty hard to make him look better than he is, he does.
TURNER: This president condemned very clearly throughout the campaign and now.
TUR: No he didn’t.
…
TURNER: We're not going to let this political discourse of the blame game of how many times does denounce have to happen before denounce has happened and come together. Because there are those who want to use this for politics. This is not political. This goes to a very dangerous issue in our country. We have to isolate hate, pull everyone together. That's what the President needs to be doing right now.
